A native of London, John was the younger son of George Bertie Chapman (b. 1873) and his wife Ellen (b. 1877) who had married in 1901. His brother was George William (b. 1901).
John and his wife Rosa (1905-1978), moved to Wokingham from Cheshire in 1954. They had two children, Pamela (b. 1933), now Mrs. Randell and Norman (b. 1933).
A staunch Labour supporter for 40 years, John resigned from the party bitterly disappointed with the Labour Government’s policy and its failure to reduce the upward spiral of prices and wages.
After he retired from the Civil Service as deputy director of H. M. Stationery Office, he and Rosa moved to Ottery St. Mary in Devon but returned to Wokingham after Rosa had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. She died on November 5th 1978. John died in hospital after a long illness on Monday, 12th of October 1981 at the age of 77. He was buried in All Saints Churchyard beside Rosa.
Wokingham Town Museum Unique Identifier: WTH0121